Jeddah resurrected

Can cities be awakened from their slumber or sleep, and can they be resurrected from the dead? We should ponder such a philosophical question by recalling different past and present examples, in a bid to find a suitable answer to the question. History tells us that natural disasters have destroyed many global centres of civilization. Mexico City, Kobe and Agadir were all rocked by massive earthquakes that inflicted great harm on the urban infrastructure, and resulted in billions of dollars of damage and hundreds of causalities. Other cities such as New Orleans and Miami have suffered floods and tornados, with an enormous impact.

In other cities, corruption, negligence and administrative indiscipline have had similarly catastrophic impacts and caused similar levels of harm. This is apart from the sharp decline in the “quality-of-life” index in these cities. Such an index and is used to measure the residents’ satisfaction with the services provided, security levels and the effectiveness of systems, and it is used in all major cities such as New York, Lagos and Calcutta.

In Saudi Arabia, the city of Jeddah, the Bride of the Red Sea and the gateway to the Two Holy Mosques, falls into the latter category and resembles a bereaved mother lamenting her past and the beauty she once had. This all is due to systematic neglect, clear corruption, and consecutive disasters, whether natural ones such as the severe floods that struck the city over two consecutive years, or administrative corruption and indiscipline that destroyed the sewage network in a city with a population of four and a half million. In addition to this, other problems have inflicted serious harm upon the city, such as the deplorable road, street and bridge network, and the deteriorating airport and seaport, which in the best of cases can be described as real disappointments. The city is now in a state that requires urgent review to put an end to such a farce.

In order to counter these problems, moves were made in response to an order from the highest authority in the Kingdom, represented in the royal decree issued by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz. He ordered the Ministry of Finance to overcome all obstacles and excuses hindering the immediate financing of Jeddah’s postponed development projects. The decree also stipulated that Crown Prince Naif bin Abdul-Aziz should supervise the operation, and that these projects should also be under the direct supervision of the Emir of Mecca province, Prince Khaled al-Faisal, who promised that Jeddah would now be in a completely different shape. Prince Khaled’s statement was extremely important, but the words fell on the ears of the utterly exhausted and scarred residents, who did not believe such words or who were sceptical.

Today, it is clear that Jeddah can look forward to a better future in terms of the city’s infrastructure and its ability to contain the population growth, in a manner that befits a 21st century city. Today, the city is akin to a large workshop where a complete infrastructure overhaul is taking place. The threat of flooding is being countered by the construction of tailored dams, being built by people with a clear “conscience” and with a great deal of professionalism. Another notable project is the recently completed campaign to drain the ugly “al-Mesk” lake. This lake was once a source of great shame, not only to Jeddah but for Saudi Arabia as a whole. The lake was a foolish solution to a highly dangerous problem. Al-Mesk once served as an outlet for sewage waste, but then transformed into a health-threatening time bomb that caused harm to many.

There is also a project underway to complete water pipeline extensions to the city’s different districts, which have long complained about the shameful, repetitive water shortages. Despite, this, there used to be an official state of denial towards the crises, with the Minister of Water describing the water shortage in Jeddah and the people’s complaints as “psychological”. As for the problem of irresponsible waste disposal, this has also been overcome in a sustainable manner. In addition to this, there have been remarkable improvements in the paving of roads and streets, and the pot holes and bumps that were once a distinctive mark of Jeddah have disappeared. We can also look forward to the giant proposed project to completely renovate Jeddah Airport, a building that has remained the subject of endless discussions.

Prince Khaled al-Faisal was not exaggerating when he said yesterday that “Jeddah has reached a safe shore following an extremely grave crisis. This is the beginning of the right way to rectify numerous mistakes and problems that devastated the city.”

Congratulations, not only to Jeddah, but to Saudi Arabia as a whole, for all that has been done in the city. We are hopeful that such accomplishments will continue unabated. The people are optimistic and they deserve more, for Jeddah has been resurrected once again.